Festival flourishes

Twenty three years after its inception the Australian Festival of Chamber Music (AFCM) boasts an audience of more than 13,000 people each year and growth of about seven percent.

General Manager Sue Hackett says they are very aware that part of the appeal of the ten day event is its intimacy and they are mindful not to compromise that as they grow the event.

"There is very little distance, people feel like they get to know the artists, the audience can interact with the artists and talk to them," she says.

"A small town is perfect for that - you can walk everywhere, you bump in to people when you are buying your coffee, you find they are at the next table having dinner and that is quite special."

Organisers are keen to maximise the value of the festival's tropical setting and proximity to the Great Barrier Reef and are exploring presentations that incorporate music and education about the reef.

"I do think Townsville and this area has quite an interesting potential in casting some of these festival experiences through a scientific prism, people are really interested in information they want to know about the area, they are interested in the reef," says Ms Hackett.

Sixty percent of the festival's audience travel to north Queensland from interstate and overseas.

In addition to the lure of the mild north Queensland winter visitors say it is the calibre of performers at the festival that draws them.

"It is one of the major music festivals for the southern hemisphere," says Richard who travels down from Cooktown each year for the event.

"Some of the stuff that is going to be performed this year for instance is incredible," he says.

Julie Paxton from Port Melbourne says while she enjoyed seeing local attractions including Magnetic Island, the music is her focus.